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Thursday, May 31, 2012

The Republican Party is gaining some heavy hitters from the Democratic party. One such person jumping ship is Artur Davis, a former congressman from Alabama who campaigned hard for Barack Obama in 2008, and now believes B.O. is leading us down the wrong path. Granted he was a Blue Dog Democrat and voted against Obamacare, but this is still a coup.

Interviewed on Fox News, Davis told Neil Cavuto that many Democratic politicians are switching sides. His reasons? He "took inventory" and felt that "what we're doing is not working."

He started to take stock in 2009 and 2010 when he noticed that "The agenda of the Democratic Party was, frankly, not the agenda that I thought I would see. "

He initially supported Obama because he believed he was a centrist, pro-growth president "who would bring this country together" and that hasn't happened.

There is speculation that he might run for congress as a Republican in his new home state of Virginia.

As if women in Egypt don't have enough to worry about with an Islamist led government (and possibly president) dictating how they dress, a Christian Coptic Bishop is now jumping into the modesty bandwagon, simply as a measure of appeasement and for his own political gain. At a recent event, Bishop Bishoy (who is vying for a papal position with the Egyptian Coptic Orthodox Church) suggested that Christian women should dress like their Muslim sisters, which- needless to say- has them outraged.

“I call on Christian girls to learn from veiled Muslim women their modesty. Some Christian women might be displeased with me, but the Virgin Mary, St. Demiana and the nuns wore modest clothes.”

Yes, but 21st century Christian Egyptian women are not the Virgin Mary, Saints or nuns, so why should they dress like them?

Mariz Tadros, writing for the Guardian UK, says that in recent years Muslim women in Egypt have become progressively more conservative, and a large majority wear the hijab (veil). This makes it even more difficult for the minority who don't, and harassment (though problematic in the past) has become even more unbearable.

In the streets of Egypt, many Coptic women have been told "Our Lady Mariam [referring to St Mary] used to wear a tarha [long scarf covering the hear], why can't you follow her example and cover up?".

While all eyes are focused on the presidential race, on the streets of Egypt, inch by inch, bit by bit, women's rights are shrinking. Women, Muslim and Christian, who do not cover their hair or who wear mid-sleeved clothing are met with insults, spitting and in some cases physical abuse. In the urban squatter settlement of Mouasset el Zakat, in Al Marg, Greater Cairo, women told me that they hated walking in the streets now. Thanks to the lax security situation, they have restricted their mobility to all but the most essential of errands. Whereas a couple of years ago they could just inform their husbands where they were going (visiting parents, friends or going to the hairdresser for example), now they have to get their husbands or older sons to accompany them if they go out after sunset.

And the Islamists have made it worse. A Coptic Christian woman said to me "we and our Muslim friends who do not cover our hair get yelled at by men passing by telling us 'just you wait, those who will cover you up and make you stay at home are coming, and then there will no more of this lewdness'". It was, she id, as if they were gloating over the fact that we were being pushed off the streets. Another woman told me that girls and women wearing mid-sleeved clothing had been slapped on their bare arms by men on bicycles shouting slurs. Another told me she had been spat on by men telling her to cover up. Another told me that she had her hair up in a pony tail and a young man pulled it so hard that she thought her head was going to fall off. Another recounts how she was pushed and elbowed by a passerby telling her to cover her nakedness (she was wearing a mid-sleeved blouse and trousers).

Tadros is convinced that Bishoy's statement has mostly to do with wanting to "win over" the Islamists "by showing he is willing to comply with their dress code for women", and winning that papal seat, of course.

Some 50 Coptic men and women demonstrated at the papal residence in Abbasiya demanding an apology, but Tadros says many were actually in disagreement with the protest.

This was the first time in the modern history of Egypt that Coptic Christian women had risen against a member of the clergy in protest. It is the first time they had collectively raised their voice to demand their rights as Coptic Christian women. The protests did not go well with all Christians: what's wrong with modesty many said, why attack the church now? Others said that while they completely sympathised with the cause of the protesters, this was not the time.

As one of the organisers of this protest, I tried to explain why we couldn't wait. I explained that if there is talk of women's modesty today, tomorrow there is more pressure on veiling, the day after it is going to be a socially imposed ban on trousers, after that a ban on women's freedom of mobility, until bit by bit, inch by inch we are driven back home.

Mohammed Mursi, the Islamist presidential wannabe, announced this week that if he is elected president he will not enforce an Islamic dress code on either Christian or Muslim women. But promises are cheap, and politicians will blatantly lie to achieve their goals. And with a majority Islamist parliament, even if Mursi did truly intend to not force women to wear the veil, he would soon cave to the demands of the majority.

I feel very sorry for the women of Egypt. At least those who relish freedom.

The Saudi people are pretty pissed off with Mickey D's after they claim the toy in some of the 'Happy Meals' mocks their beloved Mohammed. Apparently the squiggly lines (which are part of the design) at the bottom of the Power Ranger Samurai's feet spell Mohammed. Go figure.

And when you push the lever on the toy, the uplifted foot stamps on the alleged name 'Mohammed'.
As we all know, the bottom of a shoe is a major insult to a Muslim. Who can forget the journalist who hurled his shoes at George W. Bush in 2008?

I suppose if people can see the face of the Virgin Mary in a grilled cheese sandwich, why not the name "Mohammed" in some squiggly lines on the base of a Happy Meal Toy.

Gatestone says:

The toy had been distributed a few days before Saudi children and their parents began to take note of the name. Soon thereafter, Saudi Muslims launched several campaigns against McDonald's in "response to the savage attacks on the noble Prophet," under banners like "Help your Prophet!" and "Together in support of the Prophet."

Saudis, "demanding the strongest possible punishment for the restaurant" and insisting that "they will not be silent until this is realized," further complained how such an obvious insult could pass the supervision of the management at McDonalds.

In response, "Saudi McDonald's" has withdrawn the toy from all its restaurants, "in order to safeguard against any accusations or misunderstandings."

Do you blame them? I'm sure they don't want their restaurants to go up in flames.

Wednesday, May 30, 2012

This catchy anti-Obama song was written back in 2010, and actually got the co-writer Bryan Glover (a Tennessee assistant football coach), fired for having written it.

Glover (26 at the time) helped write the song with the father of one of the kids on his team. His problems began after he sent an email blast (from his personal email list) with a link to his honky tonk song-"When You're Holding A Hammer Everything Looks Like A Nail"- to various people including parents of team members. Obviously not the right thing to do, because within a few hours he was fired for being politically incorrect, among other things.

"When the coach first called me, he said his phone was blown up with parents saying that I was being politically incorrect -- quote, unquote -- if you will, and that some of them were even reading into racial overtones in the song," Glover explains

There are no racial references or overtones in the lyrics, but he shouldn't have sent it to school parents unless he knew for sure that they shared his conservative political views.

Of course had it been a pro-Obama song, he'd probably still have his job. Remember this 2009 Obama indoctrination video? No firings there.

The "Hammer" song is as appropriate today as it was back then, and they're still blaming Bush for everything.

According to a Sveriges Television (SVT) undercover investigative report on Swedish mosques, six out of ten told women to shut up about domestic abuse and said polygamy was acceptable. SVT sent off two women (along with hidden video cameras) to pose as abused wives for the programme "Uppdrag granskning". They were tasked with finding out the mosques' position on domestic abuse, marital rape and polygamy, posing as women with those various problems. Those six mosques told both of the women to not report the abuse to police and that they should have sex with their men regardless of whether they wanted to or not. Only two mosques advised the women to report the abuse, and only one mosque said that polygamy was not allowed, given Swedish laws against multiple marriages.
Of course, Hanne Josefsson (the host of the television programme), got very different responses from two of the mosques.

The chair of the Islamic Association in Uppsala claimed in the story that people should follow Swedish law.

When confronted by what the imam at the Uppsala mosque told the women, the Islamic leader explained that the imam had expressed his personal opinion in urging the women to forgive their abusive husbands rather than report them to police.

The imam with whom the woman met at the mosque in Stockholm defended polygamy and also advised against filing a police report about husbands who beat them.

He suggested instead that the women try to show their husbands more love.

"Don't refuse to give him love, because then he might change," said the imam.

Upon seeing the SVT report, however, the board of the Islamic Association in Stockholm (Islamiska förbundet Stockholm) decided to suspend the imam immediately and launch an internal investigation.

"This is a clear breach of Swedish law and they commit professional misconduct in their capacities as imams and associations," Mohammad Fazlhashemi, a professor and author of books on Muslim intellectual history, told the TT news agency.

Fazlhashemi, who also appears in the SVT report, has reviewed a written transcript of the advice given to the women.

"What these men are saying to the woman violates their human rights. The men demean and insult the women when they say 'you need to tolerate that these men hit you'," said Fazlhashemi.

He is highly critical of the imams featured in the SVT report for not following Swedish law.

"Considering the fact that the mosques have received state funding, they have also committed to following Swedish law and the basic principles of democracy," he said.

Fazlhashemi describes the Muslim leaders featured in the piece as "conservative, letter of the law traditionalists".

"Now it's time for some housecleaning. They need to weed out the bad seeds," he said.

Fazlhashemi, who is also a Muslim, expressed concerns that such outdated mosque representatives benefit Muslim-haters and the far-right Sweden Democrats.

"They confirm the negative picture of Muslims. It's a real shame that they confirm the prejudices that Islamophobes have," he said.

We wouldn't have those prejudices, if this kind of behaviour didn't exist. This is probably going on behind mosque walls all over the West, and more than likely in England, where Sharia law is allowed.

Here's a more detailed account of the programme "Uppdrag granskning" (Assignment Investigate).

Tuesday, May 29, 2012

Mitt Romney swept the Texas votes today by an overwhelming margin, which has secured him the GOP nomination for president. Romney won with almost 70% of the vote at this time, Ron Paul came in with a little over 11%, and unlike Obama who garnered 42 % of the "uncommitted" vote in Kentucky, Romney had a little over 4%.

Although Mitt isn't the perfect candidate, he's our candidate, and a far better choice than another four years of Obama.

Adultery isn't the only thing that can get you executed in certain backwoods, rural areas of countries like Pakistan. Nope, mixing with members of the opposite gender can get you sentenced to death, as well- as in the case of six people in Kohistan, Pakistan who were videotaped dancing and singing together at a wedding. Apparently they consider people like that Ghul (fornicators). No wonder Pakistan is ranked #1 in Google's search for 'sex'.

The four women and two men were found guilty of “disrespecting gender segregation customs" at a wedding, by a local jirga (tribal assembly of elders). Although the women are married, the two men they were dancing and singing with are not blood-relatives (mahrams), which is a no-no in Islam. I'm not sure how you can expect to segregate genders at a wedding, but I assume they somehow manage.

Someone at the wedding, two months ago, taped the festivities on their cell phone and then forwarded the footage to the families of the women. The oldest brother of the two accused men, Muhammad Afzal said,

“The jirga did not bother to hear the ‘accused’ and condemned them to death,”

The jirga obviously knows what they are doing is wrong because they have raised Rs400,00 in case they're sued.

They have also rounded up 40 young men to execute the condemned six. The men are supposed to be shot first, which might be difficult since they happened to escape. The women, on the other hand, were shipped back from their in-laws to their parents' village, and according to Afzal,

“They are tied with ropes. They are being starved.”

Afzal also believes the tape could be bogus since it doesn't really show them dancing together, and he has enemies.

“Since our family is affluent and owns vast acres of forestland, orchards and agriculture farms in Bando Baidar village. They (our rivals) hatched a plot to deprive us of our property."

Abdul Majeed Afridi, the district police officer, agrees with Afzal. The background where the women are singing folk songs is not the same as where the men are seen dancing.
In the meantime, the authorities are doing what they can to make sure the women are not harmed, although there is a discrepancy as to whether the women are safe or not.

“We have detained eight people (from the women’s tribe). And they have given us a written guarantee that the women would not be harmed,” Hazara Division Commissioner Khalid Khan Umerzai told The Express Tribune.

The commissioner claimed that the women were safe at the homes of their parents in Seertaiy village. He also confirmed that the condemned men have fled their village.

The local police chief said that a police party, headed by a deputy superintendent police, has been sent to Seertaiy village to recover the girls who, The Express Tribune reported, were locked in a room and were being starved.

Abdul Majeed Afridi, the district police officer, also endorsed Umerzai’s claimed that “the women are safe in their parents’ homes”.

Why the jirgas are still allowed to exist in 21st century Pakistan, is shameful. Various rights organizations in Pakistan are demanding the end to jirgas. Good luck with that. As Pakistan becomes more Talibanized, it will only get worse.

UPDATE 6/4/12 Some bizarre, conflicting reports have emerged regarding this whole incident. According to the Pakistani news site Dawn, Afzal recently contacted journalists notifying them that the women had been killed by family members on May 30. On the other hand, police officials claim they have arrested four people, Afzal, his two brothers, and the man who videotaped the incident. They also say that no such jirga took place, and that the women are alive and well. Afzal has demanded that if the women are alive, they should bring them forth. So, who knows where the truth lies.

Monday, May 28, 2012

Intisfar Sharif Abdalla is only a teen, somewhere between 15 and 17, and a mother of a newborn baby. But unlike the slew of young unwed mothers in this country who usually have a support system and family to help raise those children, Intisfar will be stoned to death in Sudan.

On May 13 (without legal counsel) Intisfar was sentenced to death, and she has her brother to blame for that. Apparently, he beat and tortured her into confessing to adultery, and was the one to bring the situation to the court's attention. Both Intisfar and the man who is accused of fathering her child denied being involved, but that's easy to refute when there's a child as proof.

Not surprisingly, while Intisfar sits in jail with her baby waiting to be pummeled to death by stones, the man has not been charged and walks free.

The travesty is that Judge Sami Ibrahim Shabo sentenced her with no representation, and only after one hearing, in spite of the fact the confession was coerced through torture. She eventually was able to speak to her lawyer, but only after the sentencing.

A women's organization Strategic Initiative for Women in the Horn of Africa (SIHA) is pressing for an investigation, and hopefully an overturning of the death sentence. Many believe the fact that the man is not being punished, is an indication of how unfairly women are treated in that country. And what about the brother's brutal beating of his sister? I suppose he figured the court system would save him from having to honor kill Intisfar himself, but his torture also goes unpunished.
According to The Observer:

Sharif is understood to be deeply traumatized and is without access to any suitable psychosocial support. Her newly born child is also with her in prison. Ultimately, some observers believe the judgment demonstrates the scale of discrimination against women and girls in Sudan and the biased judgments made against them for acts which involves two sexes – a man and woman. It is incredulous that the man with whom she has been accused is able to walk free showing explicitly the strong anti-women sentiment and harsh management of family disputes that exist within both the Sudanese judicial system and society.

But it's not just Sudan, it's Islam (in general) which discriminates against women, particularly in countries that follow Shariah Law.

Thousands of Salafi Muslims gathered in Tunisia in a bizarre 'show' of force, at an Ansar Al-Sharia event on May 20. It seems they wanted to send a message to the world that jihad is great and they're coming- for us, I presume.

And they definitely don't like Barack Obama. At the beginning of the video we hear them chanting "Obama, Obama, we are all Osama". Like that isn't quite obvious enough. Ironic, since other than giving the go-ahead to kill Osama Bin Laden - a terrorist - Obama has been a champion of Muslim causes. Then again, these ordinary Tunisians (some bearded, some not) obviously have terrorist sympathies, which just makes them terrorists, too.

Then Tunisian cleric Mokhtar Jbeli starts preaching:

"Some Tunisians and some Muslims are afraid of the jihadist. We must ask: how come? Because the enemies have distorted the image of the jihadists, presenting them as the enemies of the Muslims. We say: no! Every Muslim is a jihadist. The enemies of Islam want us to be like sheep, to act like women. They want to deprive us of our will. They plundered Palestine, and other lands and holy places. They want jihadists behind bars. Why? So that the holy places will not be liberated. We are all jihadists, supporting Jerusalem and elevating the word of Allah. Let us all cry "Allah Akbar" together, so that Obama the ape can hear us. All together now! Say "Allah Akbar.! Allah Akbar!" Let America hear us. "Allah Akbar!'

That goes on for a while, and then shouts of "We are coming! We are coming!"

More Allah Akbars, and "Hear us Obama! Say Allah Akbar! Allah Akbar!"

The video switches to a wussy, ninja fight demonstration, and to the obligatory threats to Jews. "Khaybar, Khaybar, oh Jews, the army of Mohammed is returning."

At the end some other speaker says: "We wan to convey a clear message, one that will reach the heavens. Say Allah Akbar!"

We don't want you to act like sheep or women, Mokhtar, we just want you to act civilized. And yes, we want jihadists behind bars, so you can't go around blowing people up.

We often forget what the true meaning of Memorial Day is. It's about honoring those brave warriors who fought for our freedoms and never made it home. It's also about honoring the families of those fallen heroes.

Iraq Veteran Alex Horton's blog post says it all:

I hope civilians find more solace in Memorial Day than I do. Many seem to forget why it exists in the first place, and spend the time looking for good sales or drinking beers on the back porch. It’s a long weekend, not a period of personal reflection. At the same time, many incorrectly thank Vets or active duty folks for their service. While appreciated, it’s misdirected. That’s what Veterans Day is for. Instead, they should take some time and remember the spirit of the country and the dedication of those men and women who chose to pick up arms. They never came home to be thanked, and only their memory remains.

Sunday, May 27, 2012

North Korea has been busy purging its government ranks by killing officials who have somehow failed in some form or other. According to a new report from Amnesty International, 30 people who were tasked with improving relations with South Korea were either executed or killed in apparent "staged traffic accidents." Of course, the main reason those talks have failed is because the whacked out former "dear Leader" Kim Jong-il, and his equally touched son, Kim Jong-un, keep playing with their nukes and ballistic missiles. The country also happens to maintain one of the largest armies in the world, right on South Korea's doorstep. But no matter, 30 of those officials quickly dispensed with last year.

Then this January, when dear "Father's" fiefdom was passed on to his pudgy, 29-year-old baby-faced son, another 200 were either killed or sent off to North Korean gulags. Just making sure that any potential dissension was stopped before it happened. Amnesty estimates there are some 200,000 North Koreans rotting away in gulags.

But members of the oligarchy have never been safe in communist North Korea. Pak Nam-ki (or sometimes Nam-gi) Director of the Planning and Finance Department- was executed in 2010 for being

"a son of a bourgeois conspiring to infiltrate the ranks of revolutionaries to destroy the national economy"

In other words, he messed up an already incredibly messed up economy by revaluating the local currency, which caused further drastic problems.

Since relations with South Korea will continue to remain soured, and the economy will continue to suffer (unless they make major reforms), I'm sure there will be plenty more shipped off to gulags or executed.

After the failed missile test in April, there is talk that they might try again on May 28, Memorial Day:

"The North Korean regime is hell-bent on being a belligerent actor," said Ileana Ros-Lehtinen, chair of the US House Foreign Affairs Committee, during a visit to Seoul with a congressional delegation. "And I think that on holidays or sad commemorations like Memorial Day weekend is when the leadership tries to provoke the democratic allies into action."

There's something righteous about a harassed Muslim woman fighting back. It doesn't happen very often, but when it does, it's terribly satisfying.

The Saudi woman who taped the following on her cell phone apparently was being harassed by the morality police (mutaween) in the Hayat Mall in Riyadh for wearing nail polish. She emphatically refuses to leave after they tell her to get out, and tells them she is posting the video on Twitter and Youtube, which she did. I guess those fingernails were just too darn sexy.

According to the Saudi Gazette, there will be an inquiry into the incident.

Sheikh Abdullatiff Abdel Aziz al-Sheikh, the somewhat 'moderate' chief of the Saudi Vice Police, has publicly criticized the agent who harassed the Saudi nail-polish woman. He said "...even if the girl had gone too far. He should have offered her advice and left instead of arguing with her and escalating.”

Saturday, May 26, 2012

As of July 1, Kansas will be Shariah-free, at least for the time being. Governor Sam Brownback, in spite of fierce opposition from the likes of CAIR (Council on American-Islamic Relations) and other Muslim groups, signed Bill H Sub SB 79 which will effectively ban the use of any foreign law in Kansas government agencies or court system. The sponsors of the bill were very careful to not single out Shariah (Islamic) Law. Instead, the law says:

...courts, administrative agencies or state tribunals can't base rulings on any foreign law or legal system that would not grant the parties the same rights guaranteed by state and U.S. constitutions.

"This bill should provide protection for Kansas citizens from the application of foreign laws," said Stephen Gele, spokesman for the American Public Policy Alliance, a Michigan group promoting model legislation similar to the new Kansas law. "The bill does not read, in any way, to be discriminatory against any religion."

In a statement, also meant to reassure people of the new law's non-discriminatory nature, Brownback's spokesperson, Sherriene Jones-Sontag, stated that it

"makes it clear that Kansas courts will rely exclusively on the laws of our state and our nation when deciding cases and will not consider the laws of foreign jurisdictions."

Even though it applies to any foreign law, Muslim groups believe it is they alone who are being targeted, and will continue to challenge it. Of Brownback, CAIR's Ibrahim Hooper said,

"If he claims it has nothing to do with Shariah or Islamic law or Muslims, then he wasn't paying attention."

Arizona, Louisiana and Tennessee have similar laws, and 20 other states are considering it as well. In 2010 Oklahoma tried, and even though 70 percent of Oklahoma voters approved the amendment, it was overturned by a Federal Appeals Court last year. Their mistake was to specify Shariah, twice, in the language.
Gele says the law was put in to place to protect non-Muslim Americans from being sued, for say libel, by someone from a foreign country that does not recognize freedom of speech rights. Even though it wasn't Sharia per se, a Pennsylvania judge (Mark Martin) dismissed assault charges against a Muslim immigrant who attacked an Atheist for wearing a Halloween outfit he deemed offensive, because of his Shariah sympathies .

And it wasn't just Republicans who supported the bill, Jones-Sontag said,

"This disturbing recent trend of activist judges relying upon the laws of other nations has been rejected by overwhelming bipartisan majorities in both the Kansas House and Senate."

Hooper claims that passing laws like this is simply "..demonizing Islam and marginalizing American Muslims"

No, Mr. Hooper, it means we want American laws for America.

Constitutionally speaking, Shariah Law (or any other foreign or religious law) has absolutely no place in our court system. Our court's should not be basing judgements on anything but U.S. law. We should not be divvying up property in a divorce suit as per Shariah Law, as in a pending case in Kansas. Allowing Shariah in a few cases here and there will only set a terrible precedent, and soon it will become an adjunct to our U.S. laws.

Wanna have dinner with Barack Obama? Apparently you can enter to win a date with the prez worth $4,800, and all it takes is your email and zip code.

I started noticing "Dinner With Barack" on the Google adchoice ads on my blog (which is rather ironic) but since I can't click on my own, I wrote down the url and took a peek.

Along with the large photo of a casual smiling Obama with a middle-aged couple, there's where to input your email and zip code and then the usual sweepstakes rules and disclaimer:

No purchase, payment, or contribution necessary to enter or win. Contributing will not improve chances of winning. Void where prohibited. Entries must be received by June 30, 2012. You may enter by contributing to Sponsor here or click here to enter without contributing. Three winners will each receive the following prize package: round-trip tickets for winner and a guest from within the fifty U.S. States, DC, or Puerto Rico to a destination to be determined by the Sponsor; hotel accommodations; and dinner with President Obama on a date to be determined by the Sponsor (approximate retail value of all prizes $4,800). Odds of winning depend on number of entries received. Promotion open only to U.S. citizens, or lawful permanent U.S. residents who are legal residents of 50 United States, District of Columbia and Puerto Rico and 18 or older (or of majority under applicable law). Promotion subject to Official Rules and additional restrictions on eligibility. Sponsor: Obama for America, 130 E. Randolph St., Chicago, IL 60601.

I'm sure this is a wonderful way for the campaign office to harvest email addresses for donation requests, so I decided not to enter my email address because I don't want to get spammed. I did consider it, however, since I love to travel, but just not worth it.

I find the whole concept kind of tacky, but typical. Then again, if you're a fan, at least you're not paying $40,000 a plate to have dinner with the man.

Friday, May 25, 2012

Like George W. Bush, Barack H. Obama is a Harvard grad. But unlike Dubya, who has oft been classified in the media as being not too bright, Obama has been championed as a major intellect. But the fact is, Obama is "not that bright" either, as Jack Kelly posits in his latest commentary on Real Clear Politics.

Barack Obama is the smartest man with the highest IQ ever to be elected to the presidency, historian Michael Beschloss told radio talk show host Don Imus in November of 2008.

"So what is his IQ?" Mr. Imus asked. Mr. Beschloss didn't know. He was just assuming.

There is little evidence to support it. Mr. Obama went to Harvard, but so did George W. Bush, who some liberals consider dumber than dirt. The president won't release his transcripts, so we can't judge by his grades. Mr. Obama was president of the Harvard Law Review, but when he was selected, popularity mattered more than scholarship.

Kelly also mentions that:

Obama never tried any cases at the law firm he joined.

Obama's "oratorical skills" are bogus since he is dependent upon a teleprompter for any coherency.

Obama's autobiography "Dreams From My Father" was written with help from his leftist/US terrorist buddy William Ayers, at least so says journalist Christopher Anderson who wrote a biography about the Obamas.

Then Kelly reminds us of all the not so smart things Obama has said over the years:

there are 57 states;
Canada has a president;
"Austrian" is a language;
America is "20 centuries" old;
Arabic is spoken in Afghanistan.
He's called the Falkland Islands (Malvinas) the Maldives, and declared it would be "unprecedented" for the Supreme Court to invalidate a law passed by Congress.

And remember how everyone lambasted George W. for mispronouncing nuclear "nucyular", even though many people do, including some well-known TV anchors and reporters? Well, Obama has had his own verbal gaffes including calling a Navy Corpsman "Corpse-man"- twice- at a national prayer breakfast; and has no clue how to pronounce Libya correctly.

While Hillary Clinton is out doing her Secretary of State thing, hubby Bill is hanging out with x-rated movie stars in Monte Carlo. I actually find that terribly amusing, considering he might or might not have been aware that they were.

Apparently Bill and the porn stars, Brooklyn Lee and Tasha Reign (the ones cozying up to him), were at the same celebrity fundraising soiree "Nights In Monaco" that he was co-hosting when they had their photo taken together. Lee then posted the pic to her 85,000 plus followers on her Twitter account, and once again he's the butt of jokes around the world. The English rag "The Sun" seems to think Bill might be in deep doodoo with wife Hillary, but that's doubtful. She couldn't care less what he does. She obviously never has.

Lee did apologize on Twitter for all the hubbub the photo has created, but I'm sure she's thrilled that her name is now a household name outside of her 'industry'.

"This shit is out of control! Sorry Bill! We <3 you."

(Note the <3 equals "heart")

Brooklyn Lee is an award winning (Best New Starlet and Best Sex Scene in "Mission Asspossible") and has starred in such notable films as "Babysitter Diaries 5" and "Secretaries 4". Tasha is the star of " Baby Got Boobs 8" and "Farm Girls Gone Bad."

Thursday, May 24, 2012

Students at PS 368- a New York public elementary school in Hamilton Heights (upper Manhattan)- are learning a new foreign language. Not French, not Spanish, not even Russian or Chinese. No, the 200 kids attending 2nd through 5th grade are being taught Arabic, and come September they will have absolutely no choice in the matter because then it will be mandatory. Right now the kids are taking afternoon classes during their free periods, but next semester it will be for 45 minutes, twice a week.

Why Arabic? Because the school principal, Nicky Kram Rosen, has her eyes set on receiving 'a prestigious International Baccalaureate standing.'

“She proposed this to the parent association. They were very supportive,” said Angela Jackson, CEO of the Global Language Project, which is backing the initiative.

“Arabic has been identified as a critical-need language,” she said, citing students’ future “career trajectories.’’

“It means they can spin the globe and decide where they want to work and live.”

Even the kids don't seem to mind.

“I like Arabic class. I like the words we learn. I thought they sounded funny at first, now I think they sound cool,” said Nayanti Brown, a 7-year-old second-grader. “I teach my little sister the words I learn.’’

Nayanti said her mother was skeptical at first.

“When I gave my mom the [permission slip] to sign, she was shocked. [Now] she’s happy I’m in the class,” she said.

Bella Moon Castro, 34, of Harlem, signed her son up and is glad he’ll have a chance to learn Arabic.

“This makes the world smaller for the kids. It develops their confidence,” Castro said

Apparently it's a public "choice" school, meaning no-one is forced to attend, so this is how they are getting away with making Arabic compulsory. And what about those who might not want to learn Arabic?

If the school ever enrolls a student who objects to learning Arabic, administrators will deal with that on a case-by-case basis, Jackson said.

Mohamed Mamdouh is PS 368's teacher. He, of course, is delighted.

“Soon, Arabic will be a global language like French and Spanish. These kids are like sponges. It’s amazing to see their progress.’’

Mamdouh yesterday played a version of duck, duck, goose with the kids using the Arabic words for mother and father — mama and baba — for ducks and geese.

He also played a version of Simon Says where he would say a word or phrase in Arabic like, “ma drasti” — my school — and make a gesture like opening a book.

And soon those kids will be able to read and memorize the Quran.

Look, there's nothing wrong with giving kids the opportunity to learn a foreign language, even Arabic, but when it becomes mandatory then that's problematic.

This is making the rounds again. I'm not sure if it is authentic or not, but it's certainly apropos considering so many EU nanny states are in dire straits, and the Democratic Party continues to try and drag us down that same road. If left-leaning Snopes seems to think it is "probably" authentic, then it probably is.

Written in response to a Harry Truman speech on November 3, 1949 and published in the Daily News, the poem apparently appeared in other newspaper publications during that time period, including the Maryland, Daily Herald, and as a letter in the L.A. Times.

If there was any doubt that Pakistan knew about and harbored Osama Bin Laden for all those years in Abbottabad, set those doubts aside, because it's quite obvious they sympathized with one of the world's most infamous terrorists. They've always shown anger and disapproval over the killing of Bin Laden, and now they've sentenced Shakil Afridi, the doctor who was instrumental in capturing Bin Laden, to 33 years in jail for high treason. A man who should have been honored for helping rid the world of an incredibly evil man is instead being severely punished.

According to a Pakistani official, Nasir Khan, he has also been fined around $3,500, and if he doesn't pay up 3 1/2 years will be added to his sentence.

The U.S., of course, has asked for his release, and the State Department's Victoria Nuland said of the situation,

“Our views on it haven’t changed. We continue to see no basis for Dr. Afridi to be held,” Nuland said. “We will continue to make those representations to the government of Pakistan.”

When asked why she only referred to Afridi’s charges and did not acknowledge his actual conviction and sentencing, Nuland said: “It’s not clear that the legal process is over, OK? There may be other options for him legally.”

Since Afridi was charged with treason last year, the U.S. has been trying to get Pakistan to allow the good doctor and his family to come to the states, obviously to no avail. John McCain-R and Carl Levin-D of the Senate Ared Services Committee both have called the sentence "shocking and outrageous" and want him pardoned and released immediately.

“Dr. Afridi’s continuing imprisonment and treatment as a criminal will only do further harm to U.S.-Pakistani relations, including diminishing Congress’s willingness to provide financial assistance to Pakistan,” they warned.

Not that Pakistan cares. They've been pulling the proverbial fleece over our eyes for years, pretending to be allies when they're really not. They're no better than the terrorists they seem to aid and abet.

UPDATE: 5/31/12 Now Pakistan is claiming it had nothing to do with his CIA affiliation, but rather his alleged ties to militants. Like that's believable.

Wednesday, May 23, 2012

I have to wonder what's going on inside Barack Obama's arrogant, narcissistic head since he lost 41 percent of the West Virginia Democratic primary vote to Texas jailbird Keith Russell Judd, and now 40% of the vote in Arkansas to attorney John Wolfe, and 42 percent (and 67 out of 120 counties) in Kentucky to the "uncommitted" option, or in other words- no-one. The same thing happened in Oklahoma, he only won 57 percent and 21 percent of North Carolina voters also voted for the "uncommitted" option.

Naturally, there are those who are chalking it up to racism, the only reason liberals believe people don't like Obama, but these are fellow Democrats, so I guess that would just prove that some Democrats are as racist as some Republicans.

These losses are just going to prompt Obama to dig for dirt, and this election is going to get very nasty.

Here's an interesting situation. A Christian bank worker was fired from her job at the Jordan Dubai Islamic Bank for refusing to wear a headscarf. Vivian Salameh claims that she

“refused to wear the partial head cover because it is against my principles.”

Apparently, the headscarf is now an approved (in January) part of the women's dress code at the bank, and Salameh had been warned, at least so says the bank's rep Iman Afaneh. According to Afaneh,

“Five other Christian women are working at the bank, and they are committed to wearing full uniform, including the headscarf.”

So what? Because 5 others have no problem with that doesn't make it okay for the one who does have issues. Besides, Salameh says that's not so:

“The bank uniform registered at the trade and industry ministry does not include wearing anything to cover my hair.”

But here's the deal, if you are working for an Islamic bank (or any other company that has a specific dress code) then, sorry, you need to abide by those rules. If you have a problem with that and refuse to comply, then they have a right to fire you or you need to quit. Perhaps she was hired when the headscarf was not mandatory, but if it is now, she needs to wear it or find another job.
Now this is where it gets interesting. This same kind of situation happens in the West all the time, only it's Muslims who want to wear their hijabs in companies or venues that have certain dress codes, and when they refuse to follow company rules and are fired, they enlist the Council on American Islamic Relations (CAIR) to intervene on their behalf, or file complaints and sue. More often than not those companies cave. There were several cases that Disney had to deal with recently, one of which CAIR bullied its way into winning. An intern who never mentioned during the phone interview that she wore a hijab was eventually accommodated, and she accepted the compromise. In another case, a themed restaurant hostess Imane Boudlal, who initially was hired sans hijab and suddenly got religious on the job, filed a complaint and sued Disney for refusing to allow her to wear her scarf, even though they also bent over backwards trying to accommodate her. I wasn't able to find any updates on that case, but hopefully it was thrown out.

Bottom line, if you are going to work at a company that requires a strict dress code, then be prepared to follow the rules, if not, find alternate employment.

Egypt is getting a satellite TV channel that will be run "exclusively" by women. Sheikha Safaa, the station's general manager, says men will have no say in the choice of content or 'editorial policies'.

Wow, you might think, what other country has a female run television station? How terribly forward thinking of them, except that these women will wear not just the Islamic veil, they will take it one step further into religious fanaticism by wearing the niqab- the veil that totally de-personalizes a woman by revealing only her eyes. Only until you discover who actually owns the channel does it actually make any sense. Sheikh Abu Islam Ahmad Abd Allah is an ultra religious Salafist (Islamist) who decided to call his channel Marya after Mariyah al-Qibtiyyah. An odd choice of name since Mariyah was apparently a concubine, and a Christian Copt to boot. She was given to Mohammad as a gift and was the mother of his child, Ibrahim. Since it's his channel, the Sheikh will act as a consultant. Apparently, he has “media and scholastic expertise.”

According to Safaa, one of the main reasons for creating the channel was to counteract the marginalization of veiled women.

“The work in operations of the channel will be handled by the sisters in charge of management, especially as women are the best one to talk about their needs,” she said, adding that the channel “aims at lifting injustice” on veiled women who suffer from marginalization.

There are those who are not too happy about it, though.

In an interview with Masrawy, veteran Egyptian TV host Tarek Habib denounced the idea of a TV channel only for veiled women, saying the niqab, has repeatedly been used in crimes.

He said it was essential to know the identity and the gender of who goes on air and speaks to millions of viewers.

“I have the right to know who is talking to me on the television screen,” she said.

“The issue of niqab is a national security one and it is unacceptable in Egyptian society despite the religious diversity.”

On May 17 the channel’s owner clashed with Egyptian writer Nabil Sharf Eddine during a discussion on Dream TV.

Sharf Eddine described the Sheikh’s Marya TV as “a channel of the accursed Satan.”

The Sheikh hit back by describing him as “uncivilized."

Personally, I think it's stupid that women feel the need to wear the niqab, and one has to wonder how much sponsorship they will get for such a niche channel. Then again, the Middle East, including Egypt is becoming progressively more religiously conservative. But I suppose they have the right to do whatever they want, and people offended by it needn't switch that station on, I know I wouldn't. However, it does become a problem if the government starts to force all television stations to follow suit.

How Christian of Maiden, North Carolina pastor Charles Worley to declare that the best way to "get rid of" gays and lesbians (in what is akin to Hitler's 'Final Solution') would be to round them up, intern them behind an electric fence, and let them die.

Apparently his recent 'sermon' was in response to Barack Obama's support of gay marriage:

"I figured out a way to get rid of all the lesbians and queers, but I couldn't get it past the congress. Build a great, big, large fence—150 or 100 miles long—put all the lesbians in there. Fly over and drop some food. Do the same thing for the queers and the homosexuals, and have that fence electrified so they can't get out. Feed 'em and you know what, in a few years, they'll die out. Do you know why? They can't reproduce!"

Regardless of one's feelings about homosexuality and gay marriage, Worley's comments are absolutely outrageous. He's basically advocating genocide, which is unconscionable. Is he any better than Hitler who interned and jailed mostly gay men, or Iran's Mahmoud Ahmadinejad who hangs them?
Since the following video went viral there has been a huge backlash, and the Providence Road Baptist Church website is obviously taking a break since, as of this moment, it's not up and running.

Tuesday, May 22, 2012

Hekmatollah Ghorbani, a 51-year-old Iranian diplomat stationed in Brazil, has been fired for groping some young nine to 15 year-old girls in a swimming pool in the capital Brasilia last month. Iran's foreign ministry issued the following statement:

“After an investigation into the violations by the Iranian employee of the Iranian embassy in Brazil, it was found his behavior was contrary to administrative regulations and Islamic conduct ... thus he was dismissed.”

He was initially arrested after he made the little girls cry, but as per regulations for diplomatic immunity (once his status was verified) he was immediately released.
At first, the Iranian Embassy tried to justify the obvious pedophilia as a "cultural misunderstanding" which, in reality, is partially the truth. Well, cultural AND religious misunderstanding; after all, their Prophet's most beloved wife, Aisha, was a mere nine year's old, and underage marriage is quite common in many Muslim-majority countries. Of course, that doesn't explain the fact that he fondled young girls he wasn't 'married' to.
This kind of incident always mortifies the holier-than-thou Muslims who aren't supposed to even mix with other genders in pools. Al Arabiya mentions that gender-mixing in swimming pools in Iran is expressly forbidden, and that Iranian diplomats (and others representing Iran) need to follow those same Islamic rules while living in the West.

Ramin Mehmanparast, of the Iranian foreign ministry, said that Ghorbani would be "dealt with" upon his return to Iran, but I'm sure he'll probably just get a slap on the wrist for causing them grief, but that's about it. Iranian prisons are reserved for political dissidents, adulterers, and homosexuals who all wind up dead, eventually. Pedophiles? Nah. Had they been little boys, however, he'd be in big trouble.

Mehmanparast, of course, also had to mention that the whole affair was, in essence, being "twisted by Western and Arab media."

China made the news early in May when a shipment of smuggled dead baby flesh (found in 'stamina-boosting' gel caps) was intercepted in South Korea. Now there's news of cannibalism in North Korea.

It seems that the North Korean people are so food-deprived they are turning to cannibalism for nourishment. Not that eating each other goes unpunished. According to 230 North Korean defectors, cannibals are summarily executed for selling or eating human flesh, and it's been going on since 2006, and possibly as far back as 1999. Although these are all allegations by people who have escaped from the uber-secretive North Korea, it wouldn't surprise me at all.

A state-run South Korean think tank- Korean Institute for National Unification- has compiled a report of allegations from those defectors who claim they witnessed the public executions. That report, in turn, was then reviewed by Yonhap News Agency.

Authorities executed one man for killing and eating parts of a co-worker then trying to sell the rest at a market as mutton.

Widespread food shortages forced another to kill and eat a girl three years ago in Hyesan, Yonhap reported.

A third incident of cannibalism was reported in 2011, but researchers were unable to uncover more details.

Yonhap could not verify the allegations because of strict clampdowns on information coming from the North Korea, according to Global Post.

The internationally isolated country has long battled food shortages, especially after an attempt to reform its currency in 2009.

A North Korean official who defected in 2001 said about a dozen incidents of cannibalism surfaced in that country as far back as 1999.

The allegations of cannibalism followed a huge famine in the late 1990s killed two million people.

Renewed reports of cannibalism come after another human rights group accused North Korea of operating a system of secret gulag-style prison camps, The Associated Press reported.

As many as 200,000 political prisoners occupy the camps, said the Committee for Human Rights in North Korea based in Washington, DC.

Based on satellite imagery and interviews with escapees and former guards, the committee said entire families are sometimes imprisoned for the political crimes of one person.

North Korea, naturally, denies that the gulag exists.

Ironically, while the North Korean people starve, and some turn to eating their office-mates, the leadership does pretty well. Dead "Dear Leader", Kim Jong-il, used to airlift Big-Macs from China, had 10,000 bottles of liquor in his cellar, and regularly pigged-out on lobster (and caviar) with silver chopsticks, to boot. He's also said to have amassed 4 billion dollars which he kept in Luxembourg banks. That's why he constantly ranked high in Parade's Worst Dictator lists for so many years, and hit the number 1 spot last year, right before he croaked.

Monday, May 21, 2012

I'm sure small-town Spencer, North Carolina (half-way between Charlotte and Greensboro) had no idea it would be put on the map because of the conduct of one of its high school teachers whose rant was caught on tape, posted on YouTube, and then went viral.

The long, rambling raw audio of a few students being harangued by North Rowan High teacher Tonya (or Tanya) Dixon-Neely for standing up for Mitt Romney and, in her mind, being critical of Obama is definitely worth the 9 minutes. It's truly astounding, on so many levels. Not only does she tell one of the boys that he could be arrested for criticizing Obama, she falsely claims the Bush administration did it all the time.

"Do you realize that people were arrested for saying things bad about Bush?"

If that were true, there would be no room in our jails. George W. Bush has been one of the most maligned presidents in history.

The argument started after Dixon-Neely brought up the fact that Romney was a bully in high school. The Blaze has a mini breakdown of the turn of events, after one kid responds:

“Didn’t Obama bully somebody, though?”

The teacher started to get angry and said:

“Not to my knowledge.”

A couple of students relayed the story about Obama admitting that he bullied someone when he was younger. And that seemed to light the fuse on his teacher’s anger. A couple of the students exchanged words with the angry teacher.

“Stop! Stop! Because there’s no comparison. He’s running for president. Obama is the president.”

As one student attempted to argue for a fair, two-sided debate on the history of the candidates, he was shouted down and talked over by the teacher. She continued:

“You got to realize, this man is wanting to be what Obama is. There’s no comparison.”

Once again, the students pressed for equal discussion of the histories of both men, with one saying:

“If you’re gonna talk trash about one side, you gotta talk trash about the other.”

The teacher just seemed to dig her heels in deeper and press her defense of Obama telling the defiant teen:

“You will not disrespect the president of the United States in this classroom.”

Again the student persisted and invoked his First Amendment right.

“I’ll say what I want.”

The still unidentified teacher read the student her rules…her Obama rules.

“Not about him, you won’t!”

The back and forth continued and the most strident of the two students reminded his teacher that President Bush was constantly treated to negative statements about him while he was in office:

“Whenever Bush was president, everybody talked sh-t about him.”

To which the teacher responded:

“Because he was sh-tty.”

The social studies educator went on for a full minute with more ranting, saying that people were arrested for saying derogatory things about President Bush.

Unbelievably, the students are far more knowledgeable than Dixon-Neely with respect to our freedoms. I guess she has no clue that in this country we're free to criticize our presidents, as long as we don't threaten them.

Listening to the audio it's hard to believe the woman is actually a teacher.

Dixon-Neely has since been suspended after an investigation (and the obvious outrage by free-minded people across the nation), but stories differ as to whether it was with or without pay.

Desmond Hatchett, from Tennessee, has almost as many children as his age. The 33-year-old Knoxville father of 30 kids (by 11 women) is a minimum-wage worker whose meager salary is garnished to help support his brood, but now he is begging the state to help him. Half of Hatchett's paycheck is divvied up between the moms, but because he makes so little, some of them only get about $1.49- per month. I assume at some point in time he was a deadbeat dad, if the courts are garnishing his wages, but he hasn't broken any laws by having so many children so there is nothing officials can do to prevent him from having more. Well, they can't stop him from breeding, but they can say no to his appeal for taxpayer help.

His oldest is 14 with the youngest a toddler, so he must have started at 19 and has had those 30 kids in about 14 or so years.

According to an interview in 2009 when he only had 21 and said he was "done", he explained that he "had four kids in the same year. Twice.“ What a ho!

Hatchett is the poster child for the need for sterilization education. Someone needs to tell him to tie it up.

Sunday, May 20, 2012

Someone's planning another "Everybody Draw Mohammed Day" on May 20, 2013, but this time there's no information as to who is sponsoring it. Smart, considering all the death threats Molly Hill (the originator) received in 2010, even after she asked the creators of a no longer existing Facebook page to shut it down.

The new Facebook page only has 60 'likes', but who knows how many they will accrue between now and next May 20. In the meantime, Blame It On The Zionists has another Nasrallah funny related to Draw Mohammed Day.

In another case of- why on earth would you want to live in Dubai?- a 59-year-old French expat who allegedly flipped off plainclothes policemen on a Dubai bridge and asked to be acquitted on indecency charges has lost his court appeal.

The Dubai Court of Appeal upheld a six-month suspended jail term against the 59-year-old French engineer, D.M., and convicted him of flashing his middle finger in the faces of two Emirati policemen while driving on Business Bay Bridge.

Yes, indeed, giving someone the finger or swearing at them is a criminal offense in the UAE.
Although he pleaded not guilty, the Frenchman also faces deportation. Chalking it up to cultural differences, his lawyer Hussain Al Jazeri told Judge Rifaat Tolba Othman during the trial:

"Out in Europe and several Western countries, it's an Anglo-Saxon habit that someone flashes his middle finger unlike in our culture… where it is an act punishable by law. The two cultures differ, whereby when someone flashes his finger in the West he/she has to raise his elbow then flip up his finger.
"In the West it is a normal reaction. Here it's only flipping up the finger. My client, D.M., did not flash his finger. The claimants misunderstood his hand sign. He is very well educated and enjoys good behaviour. His social status does not permit him to act this way."

The story goes, at least according to the policemen:

"We were driving a civilian police pick-up on Al Khail Road. Suddenly the suspect's car jumped into our lane in a reckless way… I overtook him from the left meanwhile my colleague showed him his police ID then asked him to pull over. When he flashed his middle finger, we reported the matter to the Operation Room," said one of the policemen.

Al Jazeri explained the story from his client's perspective:

"When the pick-up driver signalled for him to pull over, he was astonished. The pick-up did not have any sign that it was a police car. Then the passenger showed him something like a walkie-talkie. My client could not look at the other car because he was driving on a highway. Had he looked left or right, he might have caused an accident.

"He moved his hand but he didn't flash his finger… his social and academic background does not allow him to stoop to such offensive behaviour."

The Frenchman's other lawyer, Obaid Ali Obaid, asked for the case to be dismissed because it would have been impossible for the policemen to see the gesture:

"How could they have seen him flashing his right-hand finger… supposedly he did, but he should have flashed his left-hand finger because they drove to his left."

His lawyers have 27 days to file another appeal, but he'll probably be deported. He should be thankful. A free trip home to civilization.

Saturday, May 19, 2012

Although hard to believe, there was actually a time in Afghanistan, albeit very short-lived, where women had equal rights weren't forced to hide under burqas and were actually allowed an education. Most of that happened when the Marxists took control of the government in 1978, but even back in the mid 1920s attempts at modernization began and continued up until the Taliban took control and women were shoved back into their burqas, and their homes.

Vogue Magazine even made a trip there in the late 1960s, strange as that might seem, back in the days when Kabul didn't seem much different than any other westernized foreign city. I came across that tidbit of information in an interesting article written in 2010 on The Polyglot blog. Chicago-based Alex Aubry writes:

"Given the amount of images and headlines devoted to Afghanistan over the past three decades of war, one would be forgiven for concluding that a rich culture and civilization had never existed there; let alone a long history of cultural exchange with the West.

Yet back in 1969 Afghanistan was part of the hippy trail, an exotic destination for both the world’s fashion elite and young Americans and Europeans looking for adventure. What they found was a vibrant, modern Kabul teaming with traffic and stores selling the latest furniture and fashions. But there was also the centuries-old bazaars, a stately museum and Mughal gardens waiting to be discovered. A half-century ago, Afghan women pursued careers in medicine, men and women mingled casually at movie theaters and university campuses in Kabul and factories in the suburbs churned out textiles and other goods.

This was the Afghanistan that the Vogue team encountered upon landing at Kabul’s International Airport in 1969. The result was a fashion story titled “Afghan Adventure,” which appeared in Vogue’s December issue that year. In addition to photographing models amongst ancient ruins and colorful bazaars, the accompanying article also featured the Capital’s bright young things; amongst them a young fashion designer named Safia Tarzi."

The best part of the last 4 years of the Obama/Biden tenure has been the amusement factor with the clueless, loose cannon Biden.

Apparently, Biden totally understands why West Virginian Democrats turned out in droves to vote for Texas convict, Keith Judd, who gave Obama a run for his money with a whopping 41 percent of the vote and a potential of at least one delegate (which he won't get, for various reasons.) He doesn't blame them at all, they're just angry and frustrated over the economy.

“Look, I come from a household where whenever there’s a recession, somebody around my grandpop or my dad’s table lost a job. A brother, a sister a friend, a neighbor," Biden said. "When you’re out of work, man, it’s a depression."

Darn right they're angry. They're angry because of Obama's job-killing war on coal, the main industry and employment opportunity for West Virginians. Of course, that stance is changing, and Biden can be seen flip-flopping on the issue in the amusing RNC produced video below.

As Biden and Obama are apt to do, he blames all the current economic recession problems on the previous administration, but believes that we will eventually wise-up and realize that Obama's 'approach' not Romney's will get us back on track with regards to 'employment and prosperity'. I guess he just needs another four years to do that.

All I know is that the past four years have been the worst, economically speaking, for me, and I know I won't be voting for him. Hopefully, those who voted for him last time around won't buy into Obama's spin and hype- again.

It's bad enough that UK researchers/journalists Alex Strick van Linschoten and Felix Kuehn (along with historian Faisal Devji) have published an anthology of poetry penned by Taliban militants, that same book- " Poetry of the Taliban (Columbia/Hurst)"- will be available in the U.S. come July 17, and Amazon has it available for pre-order for about $20.00.
There are, of course, those who applaud the endeavour. Robin Yassin-Kassab of the liberal UK Guardian says of the project:

"Poetry of the Taliban therefore, is a brave and useful project. Published this week, and already denounced in some quarters as "self-justifying propaganda", it offers a perspective on the conflict through the Other's eyes, something worth more than a library full of cold analysis."

In fact, there has been quite a lot of praise. From the New Yorker, to the Wall Street Journal to the New York Times, people are saying it's a worthwhile effort. They think it's important to show the kinder more gentler side of some of the most ruthless, barbaric and violent religious extremists out there. Dr. James Caron of the University of Pennsylvania said,

These poems expose something of the full, textured, deeply conflicted humanity of those who actively consume and recirculate them, those who may be insurgents at the same time they are humans. In providing such a picture, the “insurgent” is restored a sense of humanity, and agency, and thus even (as the editors note) an accountability for violence that would be impossible to expect from a mere avatar.”

Humanity? Really? Who cares if these militants who stone people to death (mostly women, and for no good reason), behead their enemies, cut off disobeying wives' noses and ears, throw acid on young school girls, whip women for inadvertently showing some ankle under their oppressive burqas, sell their young girls like cattle, happen to write a little poetry. It doesn't humanize them one bit. Just because someone loves art or writes poetry does not balance out their inherent evil. Hitler supposedly wrote poetry too:

YOUR MOTHER

When your mother has already aged,
When her eyes love and hope
no longer see life as it once did,
When her feet, and tired,
Can no longer hold her while walking

So give her your arm in support,
Join her with joy,
The time will come when, weeping,
should accompany her on her last legs

And if you question something,
then give a response.
And if you ask again, talk to her!
And if you question yet again, respond,
Not eagerly, but with gentle calm.

And if she can not understand you clearly,
explain everything with gentle joy.
Will come when the bitter hour
that her lips will not ask anything more.

Nice, he loved his mommy, but he still orchestrated the murder of millions.
And the Taliban love their jihad. Here's one of the many poems in the anthology meant to help us relate to and understand the artistic, sensitive feminine side of these butchers. Foreign Policy has a few more on their site, for your enjoyment.

TRENCHES

Hot, hot trenches are full of joy;
Attacks on the enemy are full of joy.
Guns in our hands and magazine belts over my shoulders;
Grenades on my chest are full of joy.
They enemy can't resist when he sees them;
Black hair and stiff moustaches are full of joy.
He who fights in the field is manly;
Houses full of black-haired women are full of joy.
We become eager two times after hearing it:
The clang, clang and rockets are full of joy.
Leave the lips and spring, O poet!
Poems full of feeling are full of joy.
Jawad, I say, on the true path of jihad,
All kinds of troubles are full of joy.

President John F. Kennedy famously suggested the American people: “Ask what you can do for your country.” In 1961, the Peace Corps was created, facilitating service among citizens working toward peace in developing countries. In 2011, President Obama celebrated the 50th anniversary of the Peace Corps with a Presidential Proclamation.

On Feb. 22, 1924 Calvin Coolidge became the first president to make a public radio address to the American people. President Coolidge later helped create the Federal Radio Commission, which has now evolved to become the Federal Communications Commission (FCC). President Obama became the first president to hold virtual gatherings and town halls using Twitter, Facebook, Google+, LinkedIn, etc.

(among many others), the Republican National Committee created "Obama In History"- World Changing Events You Didn't Know Obama Played A Part In-

Remember the TV show "To Tell The Truth" where one contestant and two imposters tried to convince a panel of celebrities that they were 'the' individual with the unusual occupation or experience? All 3 challengers claimed to be that same 'individual', the only caveat was that the imposters were allowed to lie whereas the real person had "to tell the truth." After the panel decided who they thought was the actual 'person in question' they were asked "Will the real (name) please stand up?" Obama reminds me of that game, in as much as we don't know who the "real" Obama is. It seems he has spent a lifetime pretending to be someone, and we really don't know who the 'real' Obama is.

In 2007, when he was stumping for president, I wrote a post entitled "Will the real Barack (Barry) Hussein Obama (Soetero) please stand up", there were so many fabrications and lies about his life, that I questioned who he was. Back then we had no clue, and we still don't. Did

I have never been a birther, but the latest news from Breitbart regarding a short 1991 promotional bio that states he was born in Kenya, is an eye-opener. Now I know these kinds of things can be easily photoshopped, Adobe is pretty darn amazing, but the information about his Kenyan birthplace was in a 2007 cached version of his agents' website. It was changed to 'born in Hawaii' 2 months before Obama announced his candidacy. Either he (or his reps) lied about being born in Kenya to make him more exotic and appealing, at the time, or he lied about not being born in Kenya, but either way, he's lied. About many things.

Not surprisingly, the mainstream media is now in full damage control mode saying that the agent "misidentified" his birthplace in 1991. It's highly unlikely that Obama was unaware for over 15 years that his reps were claiming he was born in Kenya, just as it is equally unlikely that he had no idea what Rev. Wright was preaching in that church all those years.

The Breitbart article brings up a few other questionable Obama issues.

I'm not sure we'll ever really know who the "real" Barack Hussein Obama is, since he will always be reinventing himself in some way or another.

Whether you supported the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan or not, one thing I think we can all agree upon is that we need to support the troops, both our active duty and our vets. Unfortunately, the support system for returning military personnel is not great. Not immune to the housing bust, a slew of armed forces members found themselves losing their houses to illegal foreclosure. A whopping 5,000 members may have been subject to illegal foreclosures by some major banks. Barack Obama said of the situation: "It is unconscionable that members of our armed forces and their families have been some of those most susceptible to losing their homes through the actions of unscrupulous banks and housing lenders."

...lenders cannot foreclose on active-duty military members and their families or charge them interest rates of more than 6 percent on preexisting debt. Some of the biggest lenders have already tried to rectify some of their violations of this law, but the administration’s announcement attempts to guarantee review and relief.

The review process would “provide any who were wrongly foreclosed upon with compensation equal to a minimum of lost equity, plus interest and $116,785,” paid for by the settlement, and provide additional protections and compensation for other abuses related to handling mortgages of military members, the White House document said.

As part of the administration's efforts to help vets and active duty members with their housing woes, it's encouraging them to refinance to lower interest rates through VA governmental loans.

The House Committee is also finally making an effort to help vets (many of whom are now jobless) return to the work force with the "VOW To Hire Heroes Act".

There is still much more we can do to help to help the men and women in our Armed Forces. We need to make sure that the men and women who are currently fighting for and defending our freedoms, and those who served and are now stateside and back in the civilian world get the help they need.